Show Thread: Can you confirm the rumour

Hi Patti the price of this unit is 649.99, this is one of many portable storage devices on the market now. Another company is JOBO, they have units starting at 249.99. This is a handy way of checking your work on the fly, and is very similar to your ipod except with a bigger screen. James

James What kind of price tag does the Epson have?
I've used my iPod to download photos from my P&S camera each night while in Holland in 2006 (only had a 256Mb card). One little adapter and away I went. When I got home, I plugged into my computer and downloaded them.
Patti

Hi Christine, you don't need any special Mac related device for stroage, just about all portable hard drives are compatable with Mac computers. The ipod is one way to store your images, but it can be a little awkward with file names and the screen is so small when it comes to viewing your images.

I like a device made by Epson called the P4000, it is a 80gb protable hard drive with a very big screen for picture viewing. This device is great for file management as you can create different folders inside the drive.

When you get home you simply plug the Epson into your computer and upload the images. I have attached an image of the device. James - Stan C. Reade Photo

When I use to go on consulting gigs I used my 60GB ipod as a back up for my laptop, worked great. To use it as a back up device you need to enable it and it will appear as another drive on your computer. You can't view the pictures though. When you enable the pictures on your Ipod, I believe it downsizes them to keep usage low and to fit the screen. When you back up you want to back up the largest file possible so you would use it as a USB drive/device. I believe any of the USB drives on the market will work with a MAC but James would know for sure.

I have a Mac so does that mean that I have to buy a Mac external hard drive or can I purchase a different brand? Also, I travel lots and on my last trip to the arctic (Svalbard) I ran into memory troubles. I ended up burning my pictures each night onto cd's which took lots of time in the computer room on the ship. Have any of you ever used an 80gb ipod as a picture storage device (or any other storage device that has a screen where you could view your pics), and is this a good idea?

I always take a usb hard drive with me so I can back up my laptop. The one I have holds a laptop hard drive so its nice and compact. Its an 80GB drive plenty to back up all my data and pictures. I also carry it in a different bag to that of my laptop just in case it got stolen.

Is there a value in having an external hard drive for storage for most people who take a lot of photos -- say, of trips? Are some more compact yet effective than others? Eileen

I have had actual experience with this problem. Keep CDs and DVDs in a cool, dark, dry place. Most people think that a scratch in the burning surface (usually called the bottom) is bad but a scratch on the top is worse because once the outer plastic layer is scratched, the dye layer underneath (yes, the dye that holds information is on the top of the CD) will oxidize and ruin the data stored on the disk.

If you want more permanent storage I suggest an external hard drive. Store your data on it, disconnect the drive and keep on a shelf where it won't get knocked.

Pierre

Hi Sean,

It's true, cd's and dvd's won't last forever. Physically maybe but the information staying the same on a cd or dvd is not garaunteed. Don't quote me on this but, Fuji claims their regular photo cd's will last 75-100 years. It all depends on the dye's used on the cd. A gold plated cd (much more expensive) will have a life of 300 years. Just like photo paper, the life expectancy of a cd depends on the grade and dyes used. Some good tips on prolonging a cd's life are as follows. Always use a cover or protection of some sort and avoid sliding a cd in and out of a hard case to prevent deep scratches. Do not put labels such as stickers on the top side of a cd and avoid using the cd's that you can put through your inkjet. One other thing to remember is that if you damage a cd, that's 700mb of information or images that you will lose. If you damage a dvd that's 4700 mb of information lost. If a disc could be recovered it's most likely that the cd will be restored before the dvd is. A dvd holds a lot more and saves a lot of space but it's almost like having that much more responsibility. If I think of anything else usefull, I'll add some more later.

Warren

that regular cds and dvds degrade. If its true how long do they last and what is the alternative?